Home > United States of America > Nebraska > Holt County > O'Neill > O'Neill Cemetery > Robert Dwyer

Robert Dwyer

Birth	:	3 Sep 1872 Michigan, USA
Death	:	11 Jul 1911
Burial	:	O'Neill Cemetery, O'Neill, Holt County, USA
Coordinate	:	42.4634200, -98.6560600
Plot	:	Calvary
Description	:	Article From the Butte Miner In Appreciation of Robt. E. Dwyer P.N. Nicholas, Geneva, MY Writes of Butte Man Who Died in Canada Had Been Friends For Many Years Sent to J. V. Dwyer of this City (He died Tues. July 11, 1911) P.N. Nicholas has written an appreciation of Robert E. Dwyer of this city, who met death in the Porcupine forest fire. Mr. Nicholas and Mr. Dwyer had been associated for many years and were the most intimate of friends. The account as taken from the Toronto World is correct with the exception that Mr. Dwyer did not... Read More	Article From the Butte Miner In Appreciation of Robt. E. Dwyer P.N. Nicholas, Geneva, MY Writes of Butte Man Who Died in Canada Had Been Friends For Many Years Sent to J. V. Dwyer of this City (He died Tues. July 11, 1911) P.N. Nicholas has written an appreciation of Robert E. Dwyer of this city, who met death in the Porcupine forest fire. Mr. Nicholas and Mr. Dwyer had been associated for many years and were the most intimate of friends. The account as taken from the Toronto World is correct with the exception that Mr. Dwyer did not attempt to escape in his burning clothes but he and Flynn and others made a dash for a well. Dwyer ran 100 yards before he succumbed, while the others fell before they had gone half the distance. Mr. Nicholas’ tribute to Mr. Dwyer, which was printed in the Geneva, N.Y. Daily Times, July 24, was sent to J.V.Dwyer, assistant county attorney, brother of the deceased is as follows: At the request of some of the friends who went with Robert E. Dwyer from here to the Canadian Gold Field last March, P.N. Nicholas has written the following brief sketch of the man who lost his life in the recent Porcupine holocaust. Mr. Dwyer came to this city from Butte, Montana, at the request of the local men interested in the Porcupine syndicate, as a practical adviser on mining. Last March the following party accompanied Mr. Dwyer to the mine of the syndicate: Messrs. A.G. Lewis, H.H. Schieffelin and Charles S. Burrall. Mr. Dwyer was to have come to this city to make a report on the mines 2 days before he lost his life in the forest fires which swept the Porcupine district. Mr. Nicholas says “Probably the interview with Flynn, an eyewitness, and one of the men who escaped, published after the fire in the Toronto World, is as correct an account of how Dwyer et his death as any that will ever be had. The story in the World is as follows: “J.L. Flynn’s story of the fire was very thrilling. Fire was seen coming miles away and traveling very fast, but the men at the mine thought it would pass the property. Instead, the wind veered and the flames leaped down on the mine buildings. In an instant, sleep house, cookery, office, storehouse and 2 blacksmith shops were a mass of flames. All attempts to fight the fire were unavailing, and the men were soon surrounded with a wall of flames. Six men who were on the property, and a Colorado mine operator named Dwyer, who sought refuge from the advancing flames, were cornered like rats in a trap. The men rushed from 1 place to another in the maddening heat, with their clothes burning, and finally decided to rush through the flames to higher ground. Seven men started, but only 3 passed through the fire, gaining the rocky eminence burned and blistered, but safe. When the fire passed and the heat became less intense, the 2 Flynns and Gibbs searched and found the bodies of their companions, burned and blackened, lifeless on the ground. The dead men were the manager of the mine, Andrew Yuill of Wilton Ave, Toronto; Joe Fletcher, Toronto; Frank Flynn, Bracebridge and Dwyer, the American. Frank Flynn was the brother of the 2 Flynns who escaped, and Yuill was their brother-in-law. The fire was swept in a tornado of wind, which nothing could withstand, and the flames rose 200 feet in the air, swirling and roaring like a million live devils. The fire traveled 12 miles in less than 4 hours, and, despite the 5 acres of clearing of the United Porcupine property, jumped the gap and licked up the buildings. It is hard for me to say anything about Dwyer for publication because he was a dear personal friend and because his death seems so unreal, so unnecessary and so awful. I think he was only 36 years old, yet for 12 years or more my relations with him have been most intimate and continuous. My desk now is filled with his letters, my albums are filled with the photographs he has taken of the places where he has been, and my heart is filled with an affection for him that makes me loath to put any appreciation of him on paper. Bob Dwyer had a remarkable combination of qualities which made him different from almost any other man I ever knew. He was capable in everything he undertook; he was honest in every fiber of his body; he was fearless to a fault, and yet as gentle and tender as a woman. His voice was never raised in anger, nor his arm raised to strike except in self-defense. These may be negative virtues, but there was nothing negative in his nature. He was red-blooded all through. There were no white corpuscles. He got all the sweet things out of life that so many pass by without seeing because they are blinded by the sordid things. I think all who knew him will agree with me in this, Markhan and Stearns, who were with him in our mines in Idaho, George Whitwell, who spent many months there with him, and Dr. Converse, who visited us 1 year in the camp. The latter was very much drawn to Dwyer, and I think has corresponded with him since. He never fails to ask me about him when we meet. Dr. Worcester, also of Boston, knew him at least by correspondence, and had planned a hunting trip with him on the Middle Fork, 1 of the wildest regions of the Rocky Mountains. When Dwyer was here a few months ago he told me he had some interesting letters from Dr. Worcester to show me. Dwyer was a mighty hunter. He would take a horse, dog and rifle, and with a blanket and a little grub, strike out alone into the most inaccessible portions of the Rocky Mountains, and be gone for weeks or months in search of big game – elk, bear, mountain sheep or lion. He always took his fishing rod and his camera, in the use of both of which he was an expert. He also took his miners pick, for he was always 1st and last a prospector. At the Ulysses mine on Indian Creek, if there was dangerous ground to break, Dwyer would be sent in; if some unusual timber was to be done we gave it to Dwyer; if the engineer in the mill quit, Dwyer was always on hand to take his place; if the superintendent was away, he did the amalgamating. We trusted him with the gold as quickly as if it had been only country rock. Because he was honest and capable of many things thus fell to him to do, and he always did them cheerfully and well. He was persona grata at all times in our private quarters. Hardly an evening passed that he did not come in. He was a great reader and an expert photographer. Once he quit us to make photography his profession, but after a 3 month course in an Illinois College and 3 weeks in Colorado Springs where he had hung out his shingle, the call of the wild was too strong for him and hi hit the trail again for the mountains. Dwyer was an expert boatman, and often helped to navigate barges carrying 15,000 pounds of freight down the Salmon river through the many dangerous rapids/ Two summers ago he had charge of the barges for a party of railroad engineers through the lower Salmon to Lewiston – 1 of the wildest canyons and most dangerous trips in the Rocky mountains. To run these boats through the various rapids and over falls, some of them 10 ft. high, required great strength and skill; but he never lost a boat. I have tried to give some idea of what kind of a man Bob Dwyer was. He had a quiet charm about him which drew men to him like a magnet. All who knew him well felt it, and even casual acquaintances were attracted to him. One of his brothers came on for his remains and took him to the family home in Nebraska, the same home where a year ago the golden wedding of their parents was celebrated, one brother at that time coming all the way from Buenos Aires to be present.

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is Robert Dwyer's memorial?
Robert Dwyer's memorial is located at: O'Neill Cemetery, O'Neill, Holt County, USA.
When did Robert Dwyer death?
Robert Dwyer death on 11 Jul 1911 in
Where are the coordinates of the Robert Dwyer's memorial?
Latitude: 42.4634200
Longitude: -98.6560600

Family Members:

Parent

Timothy Francis Dwyer

(1832 - 1905)

Mary Ambrosia Harrington Dwyer

(1839 - 1925)

Siblings

Mary Dwyer

(1863 - 1883)

Lenora E “Nora” Dwyer Adams

(1865 - 1894)

Catherine Agatha “Kitty” Dwyer Stout

(1875 - 1959)

Flowers:

Nearby Cemetories:

1. O'Neill Cemetery
O'Neill, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.4634200, -98.6560600

2. Saint Theresa Church Cemetery
O'Neill, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.4366770, -98.6484440

3. Prairie Home Cemetery
Emmet, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5005500, -98.8139300

4. Mennonite Cemetery
O'Neill, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5960000, -98.7170000

5. Prospect Hill Cemetery
Opportunity, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5966700, -98.5740800

6. Inman Cemetery
Inman, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.3532982, -98.5235977

7. Black Bird Cemetery
Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6241220, -98.6350960

8. Anson Cemetery
Atkinson, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6083650, -98.7985300

9. Page Cemetery
Page, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.4005000, -98.4044000

10. Powell Grove Cemetery
Opportunity, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6107000, -98.4723000

11. Mineola Cemetery
Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6105995, -98.4524994

12. Pleasant Valley Cemetery
Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6818830, -98.6389230

13. Paddock Cemetery
Midway, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6834380, -98.5887760

14. Catalpa Grove Cemetery
Catalpa, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6522800, -98.8435670

15. Lambert Cemetery
Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.4300003, -98.3383026

16. Scottville Cemetery
O'Neill, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6834120, -98.5120140

17. Jansen Pioneer Cemetery
Atkinson, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6087040, -98.9327960

18. Wooden Shoe Cemetery
Atkinson, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.6164930, -98.9320870

19. Saint Joseph Cemetery
Atkinson, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5358696, -98.9896088

20. Woodlawn Cemetery
Atkinson, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5377998, -98.9891968

21. Chambers Cemetery
Chambers, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.2115800, -98.7527900

22. Hainesville Cemetery
O'Neill, Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5600000, -98.3240000

23. Phoenix Cemetery
Holt County, USA
Coordinate: 42.7252998, -98.7846985

24. Grimton Cemetery
Walnut, Knox County, USA
Coordinate: 42.5247002, -98.2780991